The Democratic Party: America's Oldest Party (Snapshots in History)

The Democratic Party has its foundations in the late 1700s with the party of Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence. Andrew Jackson, known as the people’s president, later took Jefferson’s ideas and formulated a new party, the Democrats. In its early years, the party favored a strong union with the balance of powers given to individual states. It also encouraged westward expansion of the growing country. The oldest party in the United States has changed over the years but remains a powerful standard bearer of American ideals.